Glacier Calving an Iceberg

Antarctica

Glaciers are always advancing, pushed by the huge pressure of endless tons of fresh snow accumulating in the inland valleys (called the "accumulation zone"). When the front of the iceberg advances too much, losing the support of the bedrock below, the sheer weight of the ice itself fractures the glacier and huge pieces of ice fall to the ocean. This process, known as "calving", is the way icebergs are born. I saw this relatively small glacier being born… the noise was deafening, like hundred cannons firing simultaneously. It also caused a wave 2 meters high.

Glacier Calving an Iceberg

Antarctica

Glaciers are always advancing, pushed by the huge pressure of endless tons of fresh snow accumulating in the inland valleys (called the "accumulation zone"). When the front of the iceberg advances too much, losing the support of the bedrock below, the sheer weight of the ice itself fractures the glacier and huge pieces of ice fall to the ocean. This process, known as "calving", is the way icebergs are born. I saw this relatively small glacier being born… the noise was deafening, like hundred cannons firing simultaneously. It also caused a wave 2 meters high.

Glacier Calving an Iceberg

Glaciers are always advancing, pushed by the huge pressure of endless tons of fresh snow accumulating in the inland valleys (called the "accumulation zone"). When the front of the iceberg advances too much, losing the support of the bedrock below, the sheer weight of the ice itself fractures the glacier and huge pieces of ice fall to the ocean. This process, known as "calving", is the way icebergs are born. I saw this relatively small glacier being born… the noise was deafening, like hundred cannons firing simultaneously. It also caused a wave 2 meters high.